Introducing the Violence Intervention Program: You Can Help a Loved One in Need By Juspreet Gurm, Member, NEVR & Balbir Gurm, Founder/Facilitator, NEVR
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elationship violence affects all genders, sexual orientations, income levels, ages (infants, children, adults, and seniors), ethnic or cultural backgrounds, and functional abilities (including people with physical or mental disabilities). If you have ever known someone who has been in an abusive relationship, we don’t need to convince you of the devastating effects this can have on individuals, entire families, and communities. When the person causing harm is someone the victim knows and maybe even loves, violence and abuse can cause feelings of shame, confusion, and helplessness for the victim; and take on new levels of danger. When the victim is a child, they can be unaware that the violence they are experiencing is wrong and end up in abusive relationships as an adult because they learned as a child that they did not deserve to be safe. Children who experience abuse and children who witness abuse are at risk of greater mental and physical health issues as adults. Abuse as a child is linked to increased risk of suicide. This is true for all kinds of abuse; physical abuse, sexual abuse, emotional abuse, financial abuse, and spiritual abuse. Signs of abuse can range from obvious behaviours like beating or sexual assault, to constant insults, controlling the victim’s behaviour, preventing them from practicing their religion, and preventing them from working or forcing them to work and then taking their hard-earned money. Abusers can spend years isolating their victim from all of their friends, family, and other social supports; reducing the victim’s self-esteem, and making them feel like the abuse is their fault.
all but guaranteed that every single one of us knows multiple people who have experienced relationship violence in their lives. This all sounds very depressing, but there is hope! The first thing you need to know is that help exists, no matter what the situation. In British Columbia, the Ministry of Public Safety and Solicitor General funds many support programs for survivors of violence including the VictimLinkBC helpline and Community-Based Victim Service programs. This means a victim of violence does not have to go to the hospital or call the police in order to get help. This is really important because we know many victims are hesitant or afraid to report to police. If you are experiencing any kind of abuse, please know that you are not alone and the abuse is never your fault! You can call VictimLinkBC for support at 1-800563-0808. This service is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week in over 150 languages and serves the whole province. VictimLinkBC can help you if you just want to talk, connect to services in your community, and strategize on how to stay safe.
In Canada, about 1 in 3 adults report experiencing some kind of abuse as children; 1 in 3 women and 1 in 6 men will experience relationship violence in their adult lives; and 1 woman is killed by an intimate partner every 6 days. Some estimates put these statistics at an even higher rate. The bottom line is: It is
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Reflecting The South-Asian Lifestyle
DARPAN
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